There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God.
2 Timothy 3:1-4 NIV
Whew! That’s an impressive list, especially if you’re into current events.
Lately anything that can point to these being the last days often does so, and with remarkable accuracy.
All his listed traits are alive, thriving, and highly contagious these days.
None are external events but internal ones, observable in those around us and oftentimes also within us. A list like that allows no escape for any of us.
But an escape was provided by Jesus’ death and resurrection and your choice to accept His forgiveness as an unmerited gift.
As a young boy prone to misbehavior, I fully expected no presents for me under the Christmas tree, but there they were, unearned, undeserved, yet provided to me despite what I’d done.
It always blew me away that dad, mom and Santa all loved me so much that they’d still spent time and money on a terrible kid like me.
I learned early on that the love doesn’t go away because of what I’ve done.
It stays because of whose I am.